A Bitter Pill With Stars That Thrill
by I'll Break Your Heart
Summary: "Promises"-Dying in a hospital was a fate that Shiki had unwillingly accepted. Robbed of her life, even the stars can't offer her happiness. Yet sometimes, the "stars" have different plans for the living...Drabbles about life, death, and Neku/Shiki
1. The Beginning

The Beginning

At first, her mother had tried to find the positives in it.

"Think of it as a long vacation." she said, neatly arranging a bouquet of fresh flowers next to Shiki's new "bed." "You can do all the designing and sewing you want while you recover!"

Shiki just nodded, her hands polishing her glasses.

A frown came over Mrs. Misaki's face. She turned away and continued on trying to point out all the "pros" that came with staying in a hospital.

"You can watch all the TV you want!"

"…Mm…."

"You can catch up on your manga! I know how long you've been waiting for the newest release!"

"…Yeah…."

"You can catch up on your summer homework too! Haven't you been complaining about not having enough time for it? Now you have all the time in the world!"

That comment caused Shiki to freeze in her glasses cleaning. Her fingers shook as she pressed the thin cloth over the lens and she felt a sinking sensation gurgle in the bottom of her stomach.

Seeing her daughter's still form, Mrs. Misaki quickly rushed over and hugged Shiki.

"I-I mean!" she stuttered. "You won't be in here _too_ long! In about a month or so you'll be back on your feet and heading to school like everyone else!"

The soft fabric of her mother's blouse and her lavender perfume calmed Shiki's once panicked state. She relaxed as she felt her mother's arms tighten around her.

"We'll get through this Shiki." Mrs. Misaki whispered. "I promise."

And Shiki had believed her.

 **XXX**

 ** _Hello everyone in the TWEWY community! Have you noticed the lack of Ne-Shiki vibes of lately? To remedy this, I have decided to begin a drabble fic! (of maybe 25, 50, 100 drabbles?) I was originally NOT going to post this, but decided to!_** ****

 ** _Starting off the bat, meet our heroine Shiki Misaki! (Who has been checked into a hospital due to an illness)_**

 ** _Expect updates weekly (or twice weekly)_**


	2. Five Years

Five Years

Five years.

About two hundred and sixty one weeks.

About one thousand eight hundred and twenty six days.

That's how long Shiki had been here.

Here. Cramped in the small hospital room, under the bright florescent lights, on top of the the thin hospital mattress.

Yup…here.

How she hated it here.

This hospital. Her bed. Her room.

Her life.

 **XXX**

 ** _Hello again lovelies! As you can see, Shiki has been in the hospital a long time. I mean, a really long time. I get tired of nothing towards the end of summer vacation, imagine doing nothing for FIVE YEARS! Yeah, harsh._**

 ** _A thanks to_** Amulet Misty, **_the most amazing Neku-Shiki writer I know. Seriously, she's a goddess._**

 ** _Anyway, until next time!_**


	3. Dusty Dreams

Dusty Dreams

Her handmade stuffed animal collection was now collecting dust.

Actually, everything on the far side of her desk was now collecting dust. Her sewing scissors, her sewing kit, her box of colored pencils….

All of which had been untouched for about three of those five years now.

Not that she really minded.

She brushed a hand across her desk, creating one straight line of cleanness. She frowned.

Maybe it was time she got rid of this junk. After all,

It wasn't like her dream would be coming true anytime soon.

 **XXX**

 **I swear this story gets happier. Eventually...**

 **A thanks to** Amulet Misty- **senpai. Every time she reviews I'lm like "Senpai noticed me!"**

 **BTWs my birthday is Sunday.**

 **Yup, I'm turning the big 18 years old! If this was the 70's, I would be able to drink legally.**


	4. Eri

Eri

"-So then I said 'Hey! Quit being such a prick and just help her out!'"

The cheerful voice of Eri was one that Shiki had always heartily welcomed.

She loved it when her best friend came over and told her about the "excitement" that was high school. Having been diagnosed and checked in when she was just ten, Shiki had asked question after question about school, wanting to know if it was just like all the manga, romance novels, anime, and dramas she had been reading and watching while she was in the hospital.

Eri had laughed and shook her head.

"No," she said sadly. "Unfortunately real high school is nothing like 'fantasy' high school." She smiled.

"I wish it was though."

 **XXX**

 **I can only imagine Shiki's curiosity when it came to high school. For me, middle school sucked but high school is freaking awesome.**

 **Thanks to** XphiaDP **and** The-Splatoon-Rook 64 **for following and favoriting this story! I give you two a slice of my birthday cake! Aaahh! Still super psyched about turning 18!**

 **But seriously, thanks guys!**


	5. Jealous

Jealous

Shiki couldn't help but feel jealous of Eri sometimes.

Eri had already made her "debut" in high school as…. well…Eri.

Well-liked, popular, skilled, easy-to-talk to Eri.

While she, hospital confined, walking sickness herself Shiki was still stuck in her room.

How did Eri end up being the more gifted one? Wasn't it enough that she was popular in elementary and middle school? How did she get so lucky while Shiki-

Could be stuck here, in this hospital, for possibly the rest of her life?

 **XXX**

 **Don't be jealous Shiki! I still think your the best!**

 **Thank you** Amulet Misty **and** The-Splatoon-Rook 64 **for reviewing! I'll try not to disappoint!**

 **Yesterday, I had coconut cream cake for my b-day! Yay!**


	6. Real Life

Real Life

Life was a funny thing.

In J-dramas about hospitals, the characters acted like death was the scariest thing ever and wanted nothing more than to cling to life. They were encouraged by everyone to live and would always make a miraculous recovery in time for the season finale.

In real life though,

The nurses and doctors only gave her pitied looks. Like she was some kind of lost cause.

Sometimes, Shiki couldn't help but wonder what would happen if she _were_ to die. If this illness inside of her would suddenly just flare up and burn her out like a candle.

Would her parents miss her? Shiki couldn't help but doubt it. So far the total visit count for her parents wasn't even half as many times as Eri. Less than half actually, maybe even a quarter.

Shiki sighed.

 **XXX**

 **Patience people please! I swear it gets happier! I mean, Happy late Thanksgiving!**

 **Thanks to** The-Splatoon-Rook 64 **for the review!**


	7. Starry Night

Starry Night

As usual, the midnight drama ended too quickly and Shiki was left with nothing but a rerun of a 90's anime. She half-heartedly watched as the goofy characters began their minute long transformation sequences.

"Boring." she muttered, taking the remote and switching the TV off. The sudden silence overtook the room and Shiki was left in darkness. As her eyes adjusted, she could make out the outlines of her now cleared desk.

She had felt disappointed that Eri didn't notice the lack of fashion related materials on her desk. Or, maybe the girl did notice but had chosen to say nothing about it.

Another sigh tempted to escape Shiki, but she had sighed enough for today and was getting sick of feeling sad for herself. Shaking her head, she lightly slapped her cheeks. "Get it together Misaki." she whispered to herself.

Four months. If she could survive the next four months then maybe _maybe_ the hospital would let her go home for summer holidays.

It was totally unlikely (judging by how her illness loved to keep her in bed for those much needed weeks) but this year, Shiki felt confident in herself to somehow make it to July without collapsing on linoleum flooring somewhere.

Kicking off her covers, Shiki walked over to the large window near her bedside. Cautiously and carefully, she slid the glass aside and peered out onto the courtyard.

The soft breeze of a March wind came and ruffled her hair, cooling the body that had once been wrapped in blankets. In spite of herself, Shiki couldn't help but shiver slightly.

How close she was to the outside, yet how far. She didn't have the strength to climb the low wall of her window and go outside. Heck if she could do that, she would've escaped from this hospital a long time ago. But any physical movement that required too much exertion caused her body to break down and her mouth to start coughing up blood.

Despite her previous endeavors, a sigh escaped the fifteen year old's lips. Her gaze traveled up, from the grass of the small lawn, up to the Shibuya night sky.

Her eyes widened.

There, in the smoke filled air, fighting against all bright lights of Tokyo-

Was a single star.

 **XXX**

 **And soon, it will** ** _really_** **begin. Yay!**

 **Thank you to** The-Splatoon-Rook 64 **and** Amulet Misty **for reviewing! Your words are too kind!**

 **And thanks to** Your Little Ninja **for favoriting and following!**


	8. I Wish

"I Wish..."

Instantly, Shiki's hands were clamped together in a prayer like motion. "I wish-!" She began, but stopped herself.

What was she supposed to wish for? In fact, what use would it be to waste a lucky-to-even-be-seen star on…herself?

What would be the point of that? She would make a wish…and then what? Nothing would really change and if it did….

Would getting out of this room…Getting out of this hospital back into the real world, really worth it?

The real world, which would criticize even the tiniest detail out of place, which would judge based on appearances….

Would she be able to stand up to that? After all,

Hospital patients were nothing but a lost cause.

"I wish…." Shiki said, in a much meeker voice. "I wish…I wish that…." She sighed.

"I wish that Eri will become a successful fashion designer," she finally said, in a defeated sounding voice.

She closed her eyes.

 **XXX**

 **Shiki...why am I making you so emo? That's Neku's job! (I wonder when that boy's gonna show up?)**

 **Thanks to** Amulet Misty, The-Splatoon-Rook64, and PhoenixFlame63 **for the reviews! And thanks to** PhoenixFlame63 **for favoriting and following! To answer your question, yes this is the pace of the story. But it does get more...exciting.**


	9. From the Blue

From the Blue

Like a bolt of lightning, as soon as the words had left her lips, a flash of white light suddenly exploded from the star and ran zigzag across the city sky line, barely missing the large windows of office buildings and the jumbo screens of Shibuya. With every swift and elegant turn, the "starlight" seemed to glow brighter and brighter. Then, doing a perfect 360 turn, the starlight began zooming towards her.

"Aaah!"

Staggering backwards and almost falling down, Shiki watched in amazement as the starlight suddenly burst into her room. It circled around, as if looking for a place to land, before coming to a standstill. Floating gracefully, the starlight stretched and vibrated up and down, before solidifying and, growing in size, the starlight suddenly erupted-

Leaving a teenage boy in its place.

 **XXX**

 **Thanks to** Amulet Misty **and** The Splatoon-Rook 64 **for reviewing! Thanks to** RIJS **for favoriting and following!**


	10. Enter the Star

"Enter the Star"

"My my Shiki Misaki." the boy said, shaking his head. "And here I was graciously giving you a free wish. Do you know how hard it is for me to penetrate through the noise of this city? I swear it's harder than trying to get free coffee."

Shiki could only stare, wide-eyed, at the boy. She gaped, gasped, blinked her eyes twice, rubbed them, and gaped again.

"W-what the-? How-?" she began, looking up and down at the boy. Light, almost like stardust, was still fizzing off of his clothes yet the boy was the picture of calm. With silvery-blondish hair and purple cat like eyes,

The boy looked like he was a walking star.

Star boy frowned. "I spend months trying to grant a single wish in this city and the first one I grant isn't even for the girl who finds me." he said, looking clearly disappointed. He sighed. "But a wish is a wish so I guess I'll just have to do it." With a snap of his fingers star boy said,

"Eri will now be a successful and happy fashion designer while her best friend Shiki shall remain here in the hotel for sick people."

"Hey!" Shiki said, her shock melting away as she stood up straighter in defiance. As much as she herself hated this hospital, she didn't enjoy the statement "hotel for sick people."

"I'll have you know that this hospital is helping people recover, so don't you go bad mouthing it!" she said, glaring at the boy.

It was the boy's turn now to look at her. He looked her up and down (like she had done) before crossing his arms. "It may be helping people," he said, "But it's also confining people against their will. People who have nothing wrong with them." He pointed at Shiki.

"People like you."

 **XXX**

 **Free cookies for those who know who the "star" is. I had fun writing him!**

 **Thanks to** The-Splatoon-Rook 64 **and** Your Little Ninja **for reviewing!**


	11. Catch-22

Catch-22

"People….like me?" she asked. The star boy nodded.

"People like you."

There was a tense silence between them as Shiki stared at him. Then, what almost looked like joy began to slowly curve up her lips, starting from the corners of her mouth and spreading quickly to the center.

"R-really?" she asked. "I'm….not sick?"

The star boy gave her a small smirk. "Your soul's healthy so I don't see why you have to be here." he said, looking her up and down. "And your physical condition seems fine so-"

His gaze suddenly paused at a spot on her chest. It lingered there for a second too long and the smirk vanished from his face, replaced with a frown. His eyes suddenly widened.

"Oh…." he said, more to himself then to Shiki. "I see….well isn't this a catch-22…."

"What?" Shiki asked, alarmed at his sudden change. "What is?" The star boy only shook his head.

"I never seen anything like it." he muttered, starring at her. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "It's hard to explain," he said, "But…you aren't sick….yet you _are_ sick."

 **XXX**

 **"What is happening? What is going on? What will happen?" All these questions shall be answered...eventually.**

 **Thanks to** The-Splatoo-Rook 64 **,** PhoenixFlame63 **and** Your Little Ninja **for reviewing! Sorry I'm torturing you guys but this girl plans to take this story far!**


	12. Explanation

Explanation

"What?" Shiki asked. "What does that even mean? What is that supposed…. to mean?" She could feel whatever previous joy melt from her body, replaced with a freezing cold sensation like a winter chill. The hairs on the back of her neck seemed to stand and a dull ringing noise seemed to echo in her ears as she looked at the star boy, pleading him with her eyes for an answer.

The star boy looked away, as if he was searching for a way to find the right words to explain the situation to her. Silently he scanned her room, his gaze lingering on what felt like every single object, until it came to rest on the empty spot on her desk. He frowned slightly and then looked back at her. He took a deep breath and opened his mouth as if to say something, then paused. He quickly closed his mouth and repeated to look around her room again, this time his eyes darting from object to object.

After what felt like an eternity later, he finally spoke.

"It means," he said, playing almost nervously with a strand of his curly hair. "That your soul is strong enough to live, but your body is too weak to hold it. If it was just a matter of your soul, you could just get up from here and leave. But," he said, his finger twirling his hair faster, "You've been here for so long that your body is actually _rejecting_ the outside world. The second you step out of here, the strength of your soul will crush your body. And with no body, it's equivalent to-"

"Death." Shiki finished.

 **XXX**

 **So I seem to be angering people with this story's cliffhangers. Well...(I'll Break Your Heart begins to smile evilly/sadistically)**

 **Thanks to** The-Splatoon-Rook 64 **and** PhoenixFlame63 **for reviewing! And** Phoenix **-sweetie? This pacing will remain the same because I am evil. BWHAHA!**


	13. Yes

Yes

A silence filled the room. A tense, heavy silence that was only broken by a passing truck from the outside. To Shiki though, the truck sounded distant and foreign, like a cry made from outer space or like music orchestrated from hell.

"So…in the end….." she finally said, in a voice that sounded weak and exhausted.

"I-in the end…."

Her voice wavered and shook so terribly she had to stop herself and hiccupped for air before continuing.

"I do deserve to be here."

Her hand clutched against her chest, at the spot right above her heart. The spot where the star boy had been staring at.

She was scared to ask the star boy another question. No, she was _terrified_ to ask the star boy another question. But if she didn't, she knew that the question would eat her up. She knew it would consume her.

She knew she had to do it.

"If I...If I can't ever leave here….." she began, wishing for the first time in a long time for a miracle, "If I can't...leave….Am I…going to…. die…here…?"

Yet even as she asked, she knew the answer. She knew the answer, deep inside herself,

She knew that asking wouldn't change anything,

But she couldn't help but ask.

The boy looked at her with solemn expression on his face.

"Yes." he answered.

 **XXX**

 **Well I think we had enough of star boy for now. In fact, I think it's time we introduce the fan-favorite, don't ya think?**

 **Thanks to** The-Splatoon-Rook 64 **for the review! Hope you and the rest of the TWEWY guys had a happy Christmas!**


	14. Promises

Promises

It was as if she had been shot.

She knew, _she always knew_ , that dying in a hospital would probably be her fate. She knew that she would never be able to experience a "normal" life like other teenagers.

But still, the simple "yes" had killed the hope inside of her. The hope she didn't even know she still had.

Shiki gasped and felt her heart throb horribly. She squeezed her eyes shut and let the wave of nausea pass her.

"I'm sorry" she heard the star boy. But Shiki could only shake her head.

The reality of the situation was too much. _It was just too much._

"I'm sorry." The star boy said again. Yet this time the voice sounded more distance. Shiki only squeezed her eyes tighter.

 _"I'm sorry."_ he said again. His voice barely sounded like a whisper now, yet somehow Shiki managed to catch his fading words.

 _"I'll… make…it…up…to…you…"_

 **XXX**

 **Yes star boy Joshua, I think you had enough screen time for now. Sorry for the delay folks! School got in the way.**

 **Thanks to** The-Splatoon-Rook 64 **and** Christie Ralte **for the reviews! And thanks to** NotteBoy, Christie Ralts, **and** Emeraldof the Flame **for following and favorting!**


End file.
